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February 26 2018

Middlesex Sheriff Warns of Possible IRS or Jury Duty Scams

By: BNEWS

Are you being asked to give money to the IRS or for missing a session of Jury Duty?

This is probably another scam.

Middlesex Sheriff, Peter Koutoujian has issued a reminder to residents to be aware of ongoing IRS and jury duty scams.

“We are issuing this reminder because we have seen an uptick in calls being reported to our office over the past several days. We want residents to be aware of these scams in order to better protect themselves,” Sheriff Koutoujian said.

The Middlesex Sherriff Office has been receiving calls from local residents saying they have been contacted and threatened with a warrant for their arrest for failing to perform jury duty.

During these calls the scammer tells the victims they can avoid arrest if they immediately pay a fine or fee.

The calls are either via automated message or a live human being. Some individual scammers are being monitored in some form or fashion.

“At no time will a legitimate IRS agent or law enforcement official ever demand immediate payment or threaten arrest over the phone,” said Sherriff Koutoujian.

Finally, Koutoujian wants residents to be aware of all scammers out there.

“These are telltale signs of a scam and we want residents to be alert to them so they can properly protect themselves,” he said.

Anyone who may have received similar calls is encouraged to report them to their local police department and the MSO Digital Forensics Unit at 978-932-3292.

If you have any questions regarding jury duty you can contact the Office of Jury Commissioner at 1-800-843-5879.